Patriots Sneaky Star Named Most Underrated Player

The New England Patriots have added a large influx of defensive talent this offseason. Defensive tackle Milton Williams comes over from the Philadelphia Eagles after a terrific Super Bowl performance, star cornerback Carlton Davis also joins the fray from the Detroit Lions. Linebacker Robert Spillane is the new man in the middle after consecutive years of 140 tackles in Las Vegas with the Raiders, and a familiar face to Mike Vrabel, Harold Landry, signed after being released by the Tennessee Titans.

While these new faces and big names are exciting, and will certainly help the Patriots take big leaps in 2025, a player already on the roster has consistently taken steps forward, but has been stuck on two straight bad teams, which has hurt his chance of consistently being noticed outside of Foxborough.

Keion White had a very strong sophomore season in 2024. He upped his sack total from one to five, and his total tackles jumped up from 26 to 56. He also had seven tackles for loss compared to three in 2024. Because of this, PFF labeled White as the Patriots' most underrated player entering the 2025 season.

"White experienced a Year 2 breakout in 2024, playing a crucial role along New England’s defensive line, leading the team in pass-rush snaps (427), PFF pass-rush grade (76.7), pressures (45) and sacks (six)," Jonathon Macri writes. "Despite logging more than 500 defensive snaps as a rookie in 2023, White didn’t produce all that much, He stepped up in 2024 with the team trusting him in a larger role, even ranking 22nd at the position in PFF pass-rush grade while lining up in multiple spots and even dropping into coverage on occasion."

If White takes another step forward and can get to double-digit sacks, that will only help the Patriots as a whole, and potentially play a major role in their return to the postseason.